Archaeologists are wrong: an “ancient” inscription turns out to be false

The discovery made a lot of noise last week media attention, as the inscription was thought to be the first ever found with the name of King Darius the Great, a Persian king, on it. But The Times of Israel later writes that registration turns out to be inauthentic.

Demonstration to students

After media attention, an expert contacted authorities and told them she had carved the words into the shard herself last August. So it was not a historical discovery.

The expert, who remains anonymous, said she made the engraving in the shard when demonstrating to students at an archaeological site how it was done before.

Darius the Great was the father of King Ahasuerus, an important figure in Jewish tradition associated with the Purim story, celebrated next week. During Purim, Jews celebrate being saved from a terrible fate by the hands of Esther.

The alleged pottery shard was found by a hiker last December in Tel Lachish National Park, 40 kilometers southwest of Jerusalem.

“A very serious event”

The Israel Antiquities Authority is an independent government agency responsible for the preservation and research of Israel’s archaeological heritage. The authority’s chief scientist, Professor Gideon Avni, reacts to news against him i24 Israel Information Center:

“The Israel Antiquities Authority takes full responsibility for this unfortunate event. In terms of ethical and scientific practices, we consider this to be a very serious event,” he said.